Why People Blindly Follow a Narcissist No Matter What!!!
“The rejection of scrutiny is the first characteristic of a narcissist leader. They do not like to be examined, and are convinced nothing is wrong with them. In their mind, it is the rest of the world who has a problem. In that context, the only thing you can do is analyze their behaviors”, former FBI agent and human behavior expert Joe Navarro states.
‘Pathologically Narcissistic’
Based on their work with victims of narcissists, most experts coincide in saying narcissistic leaders share a number of psychological traits that are typical of a narcissistic personality disorder, as defined the Diagnostic and Statistics Manual, the leading psychology textbook reference in the US.
Obviously this does not mean that all narcissistic personalities will turn out to be leaders, nor that all leaders classify as narcissists, but there are clear indications that they do have characteristics in common.
1. In particular, narcissistic leaders believe they are unique beings.
2. As a result of this “uniqueness”, leaders think they are entitled to more privileges. Trump believes he is entitled to fondle women, have sex with underage girls, lie about his actions/or lack of, without consequences, etc.
3. These individuals lack empathy,
4. but they have a strong need for admiration. “This pathological tendency to narcissism does not imply ‘self-love’. Rather it means that
5. these people overvalue themselves at the same times as they devalue others”, Navarro says.
6. Their certitude of being above everyone else exists only insofar as they are surrounded and adulated.
7. “Narcissistic leaders have no sense of who they are. They build their identity based on the admiration and the fear that people reflect back to them”, Pardon explains.
8. The ‘charming predator’ Narcissistic leaders may also
9. display antisocial personality disorder traits, which include a form of psychopathy. Perhaps the most unsettling characteristic of these leaders – which comes back over and over in victims’ account – is that
they are both charismatic and authoritarian.
10. The narcissistic leader is a sort of “charming predator”, with an ability to draw people in.
“This leader has a certain degree of interpersonal intelligence which pulls people into his orbit. While he is not able to reflect on his own psychological state, he understands the state of his victims, listens to them and uses it to control them”, says Dr Alexandra Stein, who specializes in social psychology of ideological extremism, and is herself a former cult member.
**Once the victims are part of the web of deceit, the effort to charm them fades, replaced by a form of coercive control, where the leader shows signs of his authoritarian nature. This combination of natural charisma and authoritarianism are enough to control others. In that sense, Stein says totalitarian regimes were not unlike cults, and leaders like Hitler shared many characteristics with cult leaders
A mirror of the leader’s personality
Whether it is large organization or a small group of individuals, the follower often reflect of the leader’s personality. Narcissistic leaders cultivate secrecy, a desire to control followers and have a constant tendency to lie. These practices are found at all levels of the organization. His authoritarianism, his control and his sense of grandiosity ended being replicated by other individuals in the hierarchy of administration.
“It is very hard to get a straight story from a narcissist leader because they lie a lot. On top of that they see people as dispensable, as either against them or with them. They see the world in terms of absolutes, and believe their ideology is the only answer to everything”, Stein (expert in narcissistic leaders) concludes. “Recognizing this and understanding that these personality traits are the reason why it is the first step to prevent people from joining in.”
Alexandra Stein has come up with a comprehensive definition, which includes a number of elements people should watch out for:
1. The personality of the leader is the place to start, as it can tell a lot about whether the group is dangerous or not.
2. She says looking at whether the structure is very closed, isolating and hierarchical is the next step.
3. The form of the ideology should also be considered. If it is presented as the only answer to explain the universe, past and present, then it’s worth considering the group.
4. A process of “brain washing” or “coercive persuasion” is also typical. During this process, the leader sets up an environment where the only perceived safe place is the group, but paradoxically it is also the source of threat.
5. Finally, she explains that what characterizes a result of this structure, ideology and process is that followers become highly dependent on the group and exploitable, they always acting in the interest of the narcissist, never in their own.
